Philadelphia, or, a treatise of brotherly-love Shewing, that we must love all men: love the wicked in general: love our enemies: that the godly must especially love another: and the reasons of each particular love. The manner of our mutual love; the dignity, necessity, excellenc, and usefulness of brotherly-love. That the want of love, where love is due, is hatred, shewed in divers particulars. The greatness of the sin of malice and hatred; with the reasons why wicked men hate the saints: together with cautions against those sins that break the bond of love. Many weighty questions discussed, and divers cases cleared. By William Gearing, minister of the word.

CHAP. XVIII.

THe next thing I am come to do, is to shew, When a man may be said to love the Children of God. To this end, consider these following particulars.

1. True Christian Love to the people of God is a peculiar kind of Love, whereby a man lo∣veth them as they are the Children of God, and as Brethren, be they Strangers or Acquaintance, Kinred or not; rich or poor, mean or mighty, honourable or base, it is all one, if they be righ∣teous persons. In natural Love, there is a pe∣culiar Love of a Brother towards a Brother, distinct from the Love of a Neighbour: a man may have a natural Love to a Neighbour, but another kind of peculiar Love to a Brother. So if a man do love the Children of God as he ought, he loveth them with a peculiar Love, as ••hey are the Children of God. A man may lo•• ••nother, for some good quality of Art or Nature, though he be not a Child of God; but

there must be a peculiar Love to the Children of God, though there be not the same quali∣ties of Art or Nature in them: he must love them as made near unto him by Grace, and joy∣ned with him in partaking of the same precious Faith; he must love them for Holiness sake, be∣cause they fear the Lord, and follow after righteousness. Some men have no peculiar Love to the people of God, but their peculiar and familiar Love is for some natural persons, who suit best with their carnal affections: these are their bosom-Friends. This is a sign of unsound Love, when a mans most intimate Friends are wicked persons; although he may bestow a good look upon some of the people of God, and some∣times carry himself somewhat fairly towards them. If they seem to love some of the peo∣ple of God, it is for some other respect, and not because they are the Children of God: it may be there is some special gift in them, either of Body or Mind, common to them with natural men, and for this they love them, and some∣times delight in their company; but as for o∣ther good men, not so qualified (yet as sin∣cere as the former, and as rich in Grace) they do not affect them.

He that loveth Religion in a man because he is rich, or comely, or a man of parts, &c. ••ut slighteth it in a poor Lazarus, in a mean ••n, though he be all glorious within, he doth not

love a godly man. And as Alexander said of two men (one was his Friend, the other was his Flatterer), Hic amat Regem, ile Alexandrum; This man loveth me because I am a King, and can prefer him; but, that man loveth Alexander, he loveth my very person. So it may be said of such as love Religious persons, because rich or noble. Hic amat divitias, honores, ille amat religio∣nem. These men love riches and honours, not religion; only he that loveth a righteous man in nomine justi, because he is righteous, he loveth the godly with a peculiar love.

So the true love by which the Children of God do love each other, is towards Strangers whom they never saw, nor are like to see, when they hear of their Graces, and of their zeal and forwardness in the ways of God, and for his glory; as St. Paul was affectionate towards those of the godly, who had not seen his face in the flesh.

2. Then doth a man truly love the godly, when he can love all Saints, as well as some; and this floweth from the former. If I love a c••ild of God because a child of God, I must love all the children of God. A quatenus ad omne valet consequentia. If I love gold, because gold, I love all gold; so if I love grace, because grace, I cannot but love grace in all. If I love the Image of God in one, I must needs carry the same affection to all that have this Image.

There is the same ground, reason, motive and object in all Saints, as well as in one particular Saint. To love one Saint, and not another, is to make spiritual love carnal, a divided, a facti∣ous love; as the Apostle speaks to the Corinthi∣ans; for while one saith, I am of Paul, another saith, I am of Apollos, are ye not carnal. So when men shall say, I love such a man, he is a good man, but cannot endure the name of another godly man; their love is carnal. He that loveth not all Saints, loveth no Saint at all; he that loveth not the poor Saint as well as the rich, the low and mean Saints as well as the noble and hon∣ourable, he doth not truly love any. There is great reason why we should love all Saints as well as one, be their outward conditions never so contrary. God the father loveth all his Saints alike. All the Saints have an equal share in the love of Jesus Christ, he shed his blood for all alike; he giveth his merits and righteousness to all alike: Yea, Jesus Christ himself calleth all the Saints his brethren, even the meanest of his Saints. The heart of the meanest Christian is the Temple of the Holy Ghost, as well as the heart of the most honourable, and shall not we love all whom the Lord thus loveth? Godly love is like the Center in the midst of a Circum∣ference or circle, which hath an equal respect to all parts of the circle; so true Christian love hath respect to all parts of the circle, so true

Christian love hath respect to all Saints equally.

3. When they go beyond us in grace, when they excell us in holiness, when we love them the more we see them excell us in grace and in all spiritual gifts, whatever relation they have unto us, yea though their gifts and graces should eclypse ours, yet then if we can as truly rejoyce in their gifts, as if we our selves had them, and do more entirely love them, by how much the more we see those gifts and graces shining in them, this is true Christian love: like that of Moses, Num. 11.29. when one came, and told them, that Eldad and Medad prophecyed, Moses was glad to hear it: Would God (saith he) that all the Lord's people were Prophets! Are o∣thers as good, or better than I am, would God that he or they, and all others were better than I. Only he loveth the Saints truly, that can love them for their graces, and the more grace, the more to love them. Let it satisfie thee, that thou art a door-keeper in God's house, although thou art not made high Priest to enter into the holy of holies; it is well that thou art admit∣ted into Christ's School, although thou art not placed in the highest form: it is well that thou art a beloved disciple of Christ, although thou hast not the same priviledg with St. John to lie always in the bosom of Christ.

4. When we can love the Saints constantly

at all times, as well as at one time, when the Church of God is overwhelmed with troubles, and nothing but stormy clouds hang over the heads of God's people, then to love them as in the serenest calm, when the Church enjoyeth peace and quiet round about, when there are no fears, troubles, nor persecutions, this is the man that loveth the godly. Doth the state of a Christian alter and decay, yet thy charity doth not decay? Is a Christian friend fallen into disgrace with the world, yet thou dost tru∣ly make much of him? Is he persecuted every where, yet thy love followeth him? Is he fal∣len into poverty and necessity, yet thy love fail∣eth not for all this: certainly thy love to the godly is a peculiar love. It is not affliction that shall divide the Soul of Jonathan from the Soul of David. True Christian love owneth the people of God in all conditions; it uniteth and knitteth the heart to the children of God, and maketh a man one with them, and so maketh their case ours.

5. When we can heartily love godly men, when they most of all reprove us, check us, admonish us, and as gladly receive an holy reproof as a kindness from them, Let the Righteous smite me, it shall be a kind∣ness,

let him r••prove me, it shall be an excellent oyl, which shall not break my head; but yet my prayer shall be in their calamities, Psalm. 141.5. David had rather be quickened up with holy reproofs, then tickled with fond and flattering soothings; such men he would pray for in their calamities, and love them best. This often times turneth the love of wicked men in∣to hatred, who pretend love as long as the godly are silent at their evil ways, but if they begin to reprove, they will cease to love. Thus Ahab dealt with Elijah, and H••rod with John Baptist, and the Galatians with St. Paul, men that did love St. Paul as dearly, that they could find in their hearts to pluck out their eyes for him, yet was he reputed as an enemy because he told them the truth. Mutual reproof is a sign of true Christian love to each other; if thou lovest a child of God, love him when he reproveth thee, as when he doth not.

Notes

• The Rebukes of friend are bet∣ter than the Flatterings of a foe; and he that loveth with austerity is better than he that killeth with delicacy.